If you have visited our schools in the past few weeks, you may have noticed a new video phone in the entry area close to the office door. This equipment is part of our school’s safety plan and will require a new school entry procedure for visitors. As a pilot for this procedure, Liberty Elementary is in its second year using the video phones. The video phone system enables all exterior school doors to remain locked during the school day, which provides an extra layer of protection and is a national standard in school safety. Signage will be clear and visible when the video phone system becomes operational on Tuesday, October 23. Office staff will be sure to remind you to sign in and show your valid government-issued photo ID if you plan to leave the office area for another area of the school as we currently do. The new procedure will only take a few more seconds to enter your child’s school, but it is a critical part of our campus safety plan. To see how simple the new procedure will be, please watch this short video: https://youtu.be/60qnjwh5b0s We are excited that our district is able to provide this system in all FSSD schools and office buildings using a state safety grant and at no cost to our schools and we appreciate your cooperation and patience as we begin to implement this plan. Thank you for your support and for being a positive part of your child’s school safety...

In order to foster understanding and improve inclusive peer relationships among students, the FSSD Special Education department is hosting a parent meeting on Tuesday, November 13, 2018, from 6:30-7:30 PM in the Franklin Elementary School Media Center at 1501 Figuers Drive. Haley Hatchell, Community Engagement Manager for Best Buddies Tennessee, will be joining us to talk about the importance of inclusive friendships for students with and without special needs. Best Buddies is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Child care is available. Many of our special education teachers and paraprofessionals donate their time for you to attend this very important meeting. You do not need to make reservations for child care, but it would be beneficial if you would let us know how many children you plan to bring. If you have any questions, please call FSSD Special Populations Supervisor Beth Farrar at 615/794-6624 or...

FSSD parents and families: Yesterday’s tragic school shooting in Parkland, Florida, has left us all with feelings of sadness, frustration and anxiety. Our hearts go out to the parents and families affected by this tragedy. With this in mind, I wanted to take a moment to make you aware of the safety measures that we have in place in all of our schools. We work from a Safety Plan that is coordinated with local law enforcement and first responders and we practice these plans by regularly holding drills in our schools. Franklin Special School District administrators meet regularly with first responders to discuss responses to potential dangers and district personnel routinely participate in county-wide mock drills to problem-solve various safety threats with those who would typically be responding to a school emergency. Because of our collaborative approach with law enforcement and emergency responders in safety planning, these individuals have immediate electronic access to critical safety information to reference in the event of an actual school emergency. Such plans include detailed campus information, evacuation plans, and critical contact information for staff and emergency responders. Based on best practices nationwide, our school administrators, faculties and staff are trained to use many different methods to protect themselves and their students. These methods are situational and empower the staff and students to make critical decisions based on training. For the past five years, we have been fortunate to have School Resource Officers (SRO) on our campuses every day, whose first priority is protecting the school’s occupants. These deputies are provided through the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office and are specifically trained to anticipate and recognize threats...

The Franklin Special School District is excited to welcome students back for a half day on Wednesday, August 8. Students will dismiss three hours early, but will have an opportunity to eat lunch before they leave. Additionally, please be advised that bus stop times will fluctuate the first two weeks of school as ridership stabilizes. Prior to the first day, please confirm your child’s bus stop location and time as these may change each year. The easiest way to check this is by going online to https://ewa.edulogweb.com/FRANKLINSPTN01web/webquery We request parents to remain at the bus stop with your child 10 minutes before the posted time until your route stabilizes and times become more predictable. We also encourage parents of younger students to wait for your child at the stop in the afternoon. As a safety precaution, if a young child does not have an older sibling or adult at the stop or expresses a concern about safety, the driver has the prerogative to return the child to the school for a parent to retrieve. Please review the 2018-2019 Bus Rules and Regulations with your child so the expectations are known before they ever board the bus. Finally, as you drive through town in the coming weeks, please remember to slow down when you see a school bus and NEVER pass a stopped bus. Students depend on the bus stop arm to cross the street safely. The Franklin Police Department is paying special attention to the safety of our students as school resumes and has provided important information in this news release: https://franklinpdnews.com/2018/08/06/school-back-in-session-this-week-keeping-kids-safe-top-fpd-priority/ If you have any questions about your...

On Aug. 4, Williamson County churches and non-profit organizations will distribute backpacks filled with school supplies at the 2018 Big Backpack Giveaway to help students in need. The Big Backpack Giveaway will be from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. at Liberty Elementary, 600 Liberty Pike, and will include music, food and fun for the entire family. Children are required to be present to receive backpacks. The Backpack Giveaway is made possible through a partnership with United Way of Williamson County and their partners, GraceWorks Ministries, Publix Supermarkets, donations through Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee’s Big Payback and our location host – Liberty Elementary School....

All FSSD schools are hosting a Meet and Greet “drop-in” style event on Monday, August 6, from 3:30-6:30 PM. Students and their parents are invited to get together with friends and faculty and take advantage of this opportunity to meet your teacher and classmates, receive a schedule, turn in missing forms or documents, and receive important back to school information. Interpreters will be...